One weekday I was too overwhelmed with work that my friend suggested that we take a short stop to recharge. I thought it would be just a short stop in starbucks for a cheesecake fix but then he asked me where the cat cafe I was telling him about was located. Situated in one of Gateway's Manhattan Condominiums was the cat themed cafe called Bengal Brew. I thought that it would be just a short stop to watch the cats run around and my friend offered to treat me as a reward for surviving the day.

[Little Note: I was diagnosed with anxiety and depression half a year ago, I have truly awesome friends who are supportive in this little battle of mine.. NOW BACK TO THE CATS!]

They offer two packages that would allow you to mingle with the cats. You may have the 199 PHP package which allows you a 1 hour playtime plus a drink of your choice or you may have the 350 PHP package which allows you a 2 hour playtime plus a drink and pastry of your choice.

We opted to take the 199 php package and got some iced caffeinated drinks. (They offer matcha too :3 but they were fresh out when we went there.) They come in these adorable spill proof tumblers since the cats will be crawling all over your tables and bags and possibly pushing these babies off the tables too.

If you guys are planning to pay them a visit make sure to wear socks. To ensure the health of the cats you will be asked to change into indoor shoes and for sanitary purposes they would require you to wear socks along with the slippers, for those people who aren't socks people (yes, there a such people) they offer socks for sale for 100 PHP. 

Cats also tend to scratch and bite those who play with them, so before you enter you will be asked to sign their waiver noting that you are aware of the risks of playing with these furbabies.



The inside is very spacious with tables and chairs for you to seat in while in my case I opted to sit on the floor hoping for some cats to come near but, sadly we arrived late and most of them were already napping. The cafe was also able to maximize ceiling and wall space with cat pathways and steps placed all over the place.

One thing I truly loved about the place is that even if there weren't a lot of cats the place helped in calming me down, the ambiance was comforting with or without the cats.

But we were there for cats and the attendant nicely let more of the awake cats out and I figured the easiest way to catch their attention was to get some food out. You can request for food to feed them for an additional 100 PHP, but be warned they can get very aggressive when it comes to food. I was only allowed to feed 2 cats through my hand, despite the number of reminders that they bite I still fed one up close and got a rather deep cut on my thumb. The attendants assisted in cleaning my cut right after we finished feeding them. Sadly, I accidentally erased the video we took as I was feeding them, we'd try to record again.

Here are just some things to remember when you want to visit them:

1. Do not force interaction with the cats.
2. Do not feed them upclose, ask the attendant which ones you can feed.
3. Do not carry them without their permission and without the attendants assistance.
4. Do not wake them up.
5. Should you get clawed or bit inform the attendant immediately so that they may assist in disinfecting it.
6. If you are going to carry them take note that they will be big and heavy. An average female bengal cat may reach up to 10 pounds while a male bengal cat may reach up to 15 pounds.

Below is a video compilation of our photos in the cafe. Enjoy and if you want to visit or ask them questions you may send them a message through their Facebook by clicking this link.